Sign of the Whale

Fun mix of music! DJ on point! The bartenders are more worried about texting than serving. We waited AFTER other people came because they were too busy. Rude staff. Stayed for the DJ.

Abysmal. Terrible service. Empty restaurant yet they still couldn't figure their stuff out. They were out of pretty much everything. The bartender and two bar backs were too busy vaping, picking at their private parts, (disgusting), and eating fries to care about the patrons. And to tack on 20% service charge automatically. It's criminal. Never again.

Great place to brunch. Attentive staff and great tasting food portions. Will definitely come back here!

If I could give this place 0 stars I would-- absolutely terrible. There was vomit in the bathroom, everyone looked under the age of 18 and it was over capacity. I'll never be going back

Having been to Sign of the Whale a couple years ago, before the renovations, and now again more recently, it is a night and day difference! Not that it was ever bad at any point before, but overall, it seems even better now! Now only is this a fun bar, club, and happy hour spot, it is a great place to get brunch, lunch, dinner, or go on a date. The food is seriously underrated and extremely good! Do not miss this spotPrices: the prices here were extremely reasonable. I was impressed by the portion sizes that we're consistent across appetizers and entrées. I believe that I paid about $12 for an extremely large veggie burger, which was realistically twice the size of the average veggie burger that most restaurants present. They came with a healthy serving of fries and a pickle as well. My friend got a very large burger as well which came with so many toppings and was very reasonably priced. Drinks for pretty typical pricing for DC as well. All and all very reasonable and budget friendly. Interior: Ever since re-opening, the interior game has been stepped up at sign of the whale. The tables and mirrors and comfortable furniture and lighting really set the mood for a round of drinks or a romantic date. It is so much cuter than it was before, and that's not even to say that it was ugly before! Upgrades across the board Service: My friend and I received awesome service here. Our order was taken quickly, and the food was delivered very quickly as well. The bartender helped us choose drinks that matched what we wanted, and was very patient with us, even though we did not know the menu well. Overall a very friendly environment.Food: finally... To the best part! The food! I cannot say how delicious the food was here. It really blew my friend and I away. This was hands-down the best veggie burger that I've ever eaten in DC, and possibly anywhere. As a vegetarian this is a plate that I get really frequently, so to say that this is the best is a pretty big compliment from me! My friend absolutely devoured his meat based burger, and shared similar sentiments about it as well. We both finished our food in record time. We also shared a Caesar salad which was very good.Drinks: My friend got a couple of beers and really enjoyed them. I opted for some cocktails, and tried the side of the cocktail. As a person that prefers fruitier and sweeter drinks, this absolutely hit the spot and it was delicious. It tasted a lot like sangria. Drinks were definitely affordable and hit the mark. They had a diverse drink menu, and I believe that they have specials for happy hours and based on the time of year. Sports: Initially, my friend and I came to Sign of the Whale searching for a last minute spot to watch March Madness basketball. This was a perfect spot to watch sports. It was not too crowded and you could definitely get up close to a TV. I would definitely recommend this for sports watchers in the DC area. The staff were very flexible in changing the station to whatever we wanted. There was soccer playing on another TV, there was some football discussion, and of course the basketball game that we came for was playing! It can be hard sometimes to find spots that have good food, drink, and will play sports that you want on request, but Sign of the Whale was able to accommodate in all of these areas!Crowd: When I used to come to sign as well a few years ago, I remember the crowd being a bit younger. There is still definitely a young crowdthat frequents this location, consisting of college and early 20s individuals. However, I think that there is a little bit more diversity in age now, and you see some people in their mid-20s to later 20s to even older and well into the 40s and 50s. It is great to see so many DC folks at this wonderful spot.Brownie points: the waitstaff surprisingly gave my friend and I some extra shots at the end of our meal, which really helped off an incredible experience! I would 10 out of 10 recommend anyone in the DuPont area. Cannot wait to try the spot for brunch soon.Recommendations: I really wish that they had a larger/brighter sign to indicate that they are open! The lights are pretty dim and their open sign is kinda tiny-- with so many places having adjusted hours due to Covid, my friend and I almost walked by thinking that it was closed- so glad we took a double look and went in! Cons: Truly can't think of even one. This was an awesome place to grab dinner, and absolutely exceeded my expectations on every level! Stop by Sign of the Whale next time you are in Dupont!

The drag show was decent enough but wow the service here was bad. The first warning should have been the AWFUL coffee. How are you going to say you've been hosting a drag brunch for two years and yet you can't make a pot of coffee? The staff was running around like it was their first day and no one told them they were going to have actual people looking for food and drinks. When we finally got our food, most of it was cold. The hash browns were cold and mushy. One of us got an omelette that was covered in so much oil/butter it was shiny. They also clearly used older avocado on the bagel we got, trying to hide it under a slice of smoked salmon. I would not recommend this place.

Everyone there was under aged. The girls in the bathroom were talking about whether they were going into senior year of high school or freshman year of college.

I don't even know where to begin. Me and four friends went for drag brunch on Sunday during Pride. My friends arrived before I did and were seated in the back in a booth. My friend went to slide in to the booth and some brown substance was on the seat which then got on her hands. They requested another table. Table number two was so unbalanced and falling apart that any movement you made your drink went flying. We realized it was going to be a problem and we moved to our third table. Two friends ordered coffee to start. One asked for cream and sugar and was told, "I don't think we have sugar right now. I'll check." By the time the sugar came out, the coffee was gone. Three of five did bottomless mimosas but had to go up to the bar for constant refills before finally requesting they just give us the bottle of champagne. There were three people working - two bartenders and one server. One bartender was eating her breakfast behind the bar, one bartender was on and off her cell phone making calls, and the third staff member was responsible for serving every table at the restaurant - AND IT WAS HER FIRST DAY SERVING THERE. Dana was so positive and seemed happy to be there which is about the only positive I can say for SOTW. One hour into being seated we placed our food orders. The first two orders came out after 30 minutes. The next two came out 15 minutes later. The last plate arrived 20 minutes after that. The person who received their food last waited 60 minutes for her food and ate alone because we were all finished. The chicken and waffles were good. Definitely do not order the side of bacon or the hash browns. The bacon was clearly cooked previously and microwaved because it was the texture of beef jerky and had absolute zero grease on it - bone dry bacon. The hasbrowns weren't fried or even pan fried and had zero flavor. Last and certainly not least.... The cleanliness. The floors were so sticky and dirty from the previous nights party. There was gum stuck in various places on the brick wall near my head at the table. The women's restroom has two stalls. The first stall has a toilet that is sideways so your leg hits the wall while you're going. It had one roll of toilet paper that was down to the last few squares. The second stall had vomit caked on the toilet from the night before (clearly wasn't that day because we got there when they opened) so nobody could use that stall. The sink had no hand soap. And to make matters worse, the bathroom obviously reeked of vomit. The drag was supposed to start at 12:30. The performers came out at 1:05. Five minutes into the show the microphone died and the MC had to yell for each performer coming out. I don't think it needs to be said but I will never return and I certainly don't recommend this place to anybody. I don't know how they have business or have remained in business this long. They automatically add 20% gratuity to your check so nobody really seems to give a s*** about your experience - they'll get tipped regardless. Hope this helps the next person not make the same mistake we did.

Great Philadelphia Eagles bar!! Food was very good, would recommend the tacos with a side of French fries.

Great food, great drinks. Bartenders are very nice. Chef really knows his stuff. Great place to hang out!